Why Would You Paint Your Car Matte Black?

The SEMA show is chock-full of cars painted in matte finishes of all colors. There is no accounting for bad taste. Although some people think these cars look keen, there is of course the maintenance problem.

When asked about the pros and cons of matte black, one forum member (niky) responded: “Matte black paint looks awesome when it’s new and kept clean… but give it a few weeks, let it get dirty, and no matter how you clean it, it looks old and crappy.”

I think such owners want to make their cars look stealthy, like the B-2 Bomber with its radar-absorbing paint. They don’t realize their cars may become just as obsolete.

You can’t use wax on it, scratches are impossible to get rid of, special detergents and frequent washing are required, and a matte paint sealant is a good idea. Every defect will show (primer paint is flat—remember?—to show defects).

If you want to make a statement with your car, vinyl wraps (see the camo TT above) are a much better idea.

But unless you’re on a tight budget, give the wrap job to a pro, since the application process is really difficult. You’ll save a lot of money doing it yourself but will curse the creases and bubbles that result. Truly, you have to be a little nuts to go the cut-and-paste route.

That said, here are some of the many variations on a theme that appeared at SEMA last year. Turn off the wretched sound and check out these matte and wrapped cars, a few of which do look great, I must say.

Vinyl is a lot more durable than any matte finish; it comes in all kinds of patterns, colors and finishes; and you can remove it to get the original paint back when you sell the car. More information here.

Are you, or have you ever been, tempted to go the matte or vinyl route with your wheels?

Well I must say, I am quite a tasteful person and as much I agree with you that yo don’t need huge exhausts etc, I can assure you my land rover will look really nice in Matt black. #justsauing. DF@ Randy

I’m just gonna take the wild guess that you’re one of those “I like sport cars so that means I’m a car guy” kinda person, although you have an interesting bad opinion, some people like that stuff, deal with, no need to insult, some people just like the rat rod look. Personally I think matte colors look ok, if you care about your car then it should be cleaned frequently no matter what.

Just another fad for the young lemmings to pi$$ their money away trying to impress each other with how bad their taste is. Face it, people with no class need rides too, hence all the highline spoilers, can mufflers and megastereos. Guys who like matte finish are probably also attracted to toothless women who drink too much. While there might be some advantage, mostly disadvantage.